In the Maritimes, wild blueberry production depends on insect pollination and beekeepers play an important role in making that possible. Because honey bees are the main pollinator used in wild blueberry fields, the relationship between blueberry growers and beekeepers is very important to the industry’s success. Events like the WBPANS field day help strengthen that partnership and highlight important work happening in the industry.

Review of the 2026 WBPANS Field Day

June has been an eventful month for the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture! This week on Wednesday June 24^th, ATTTA attended the Wild Blueberry Producers Association of Nova Scotia (WBPANS) annual field day in Onslow. This field day provided an opportunity for producers to engage with new products, industry updates, and advanced techniques all related to the wild blueberry industry.

The morning began with registration, followed by an overview of the day’s events. Attendees then travelled to a local producer’s blueberry fields, where, along with blueberry specialist Hugh Lyu (Perennia), the impact of last year’s drought was discussed. This also included a mention of the impacts on wild blueberry production of this spring’s colder than average weather. This set the tone for the group to tour the Wild Blueberry Research Institute, learning about ongoing research projects from Dr. David Percival (Dalhousie University). The morning taught producers and beekeepers more about the current struggles happening in the industry, research on wild blueberry production, and provided the chance to ask questions directly to industry experts.

Figure 1: Peter Swinkels, blueberry producer, (Left) and Hugh Lyu (Right) on a Wild Blueberry Field (ATTTA ©, 2026)

After returning to the main venue, River Breeze Farm, participants spent the rest of the morning viewing trade show exhibits, which featured equipment suppliers, agri-businesses and research groups.  This experience gave attendees the chance to connect directly with service providers and build up an appetite. Lunch was catered by Sizzlers BBQ, which included a delicious wild blueberry crumble for dessert.

Following lunch, opening remarks from the WBPANS president Andrew Dobson, were followed by greetings from The Honourable Greg Morrow, Minister of Agriculture. The Minister recognized both the importance and the challenges of the wild blueberry industry. The WBPANS executive director, Janette McDonald, provided updates on the WBPANS organization. Hugh Lyu delivered an industry overview, discussing struggles producers have faced over the last year, and indicated that there is an optimistic expectation for wild blueberries this year.  It was predicted, looking at the current situation, that the Nova Scotia crop yield may be 30-40 million pounds.

Figure 2: Andrew Dobson, President of the Wild Blueberry Producers Association of Nova Scotia  (ATTTA ©, 2026)

Following the speakers, attendees moved outdoors for field demonstrations, and equipment displays. ATTTA hosted a display which focused on how to set up an electric fence to protect honey bees and bumble bees in areas with high bear pressure. This included how baiting techniques are used to train wildlife about fences, proper grounding for reliable fence performance, and considerations for placing honey bee and bumble bee colonies in wild blueberry fields, including recommended distances between them (100m). These demonstrations highlight to producers the importance of protecting hives, how to reduce wildlife conflicts and how to support pollination for wild blueberries.

Figure 3: ATTTA’s Demonstration of an Electric Fence designed for High-Bear Pressure Areas (in front of the River Breeze Farm)  (ATTTA ©, 2026)

The WBPANS Field Day was another successful event, with help of producers, researchers and industry partners to show support for the industry of which they are part. The turnout was amazing, with 214 people registered for the event! Thank you so much to the Wild Blueberry Producers Association of Nova Scotia for hosting such a great field day!

Written by Kaitlyn Newton, ATTTA Seasonal Apiculturist

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

 

Looking to the 2026 Pollination Season and Beyond

The 2026 pollination season is fast approaching. Across the Maritime region, beekeepers are starting to prepare for the movement of thousands of honey bee colonies to wild blueberry fields. This week’s blog post will highlight some of the expectations of the 2026 pollination season and provide key future considerations for beekeepers and wild blueberry growers.

Looking to the 2026 Pollination Season and Beyond

Over the past month or more, beekeepers have been working hard to care for colonies. When weather has permitted, beekeepers have been assessing winter loss, checking food stores, feeding if necessary, and are now starting the process of balancing colonies for the coming pollination season.    Winter losses and spring management will determine the number of colonies available for pollination.  The hope is that the region’s pollination capacity this spring has increased in comparison to last.  Under ideal conditions, around 35,000 Maritime colonies will be sent to wild blueberry pollination for the 2026 season.  Breaking this optimistic goal down by province, Nova Scotia may approach 20,000 colonies for pollination this spring.  New Brunswick is well placed to have 10,000 colonies available, and PEI could approach 5,000 colonies.  These speculative numbers will depend on winter losses and will only be determined after blueberry bloom.

Honey bee pollinating wild blueberry flower (ATTTA©2022).

The demand for wild blueberry pollination remains high across the Maritime region. Last year, New Brunswick imported over 30,000 honey bee colonies to provide pollination services, Prince Edward Island imported nearly 3,500 colonies, and Nova Scotia imported 864 colonies. It is expected that each Maritime province will import an equal, or increased, number of colonies to help meet the pollination demand in 2026. Nova Scotia may extend the Pollination Pilot Project, introduced in 2025, with possibly an expanded number of pollinating colonies permitted to enter the province in 2026. The other two Maritime provinces may have an increase in demand for imported colonies as is often seen when there is confidence in a robust market price for blueberries. This strong demand for pollination units sees blueberry producers increasingly looking outside the region to meet their need for pollination units.  As blueberry producers lean more on imported colonies, as well as non-apis pollinators, the market share held by Maritime beekeepers is worth exploring.

According to a leading business magazine, the Harvard Business Review, in any business, market share is the main determinant for profitability due to economies of scale, market power, and the quality of management.  Market share is simply defined as:

Often the individual sales may be a single company selling a specific product into a larger market, but this can also apply to a market sector.  A relatable example is the report by Stats Canada that, in 2024, lowbush blueberry production was 94,111 metric tons against an overall fruit production for the country of 930,982 metric tons.  This indicates that the lowbush blueberry sector represented a 10.1% market share of overall fruit production in Canada. This sort of model can be applied to other aspects of wild blueberry production and commercial beekeeping.

When looking at pollination for wild blueberries, the market share held by beekeepers has changed over the years.  An interesting example can be found when looking at some statistics from the New Brunswick wild blueberry industry generally and the current Wild Blueberry Pollination Strategy specifically.  As reported in the executive summary of the strategy¹,  on average for the period from 2018 – 2023, New Brunswick beekeepers supplied 9,500 colonies out of the total 32,500 used for wild blueberry pollination (29.23% market share).  The projections in the strategy estimate that by 2029, New Brunswick beekeepers will supply 17,000 of the 57,000 honey bee colonies required for wild blueberry pollination.  This would maintain market share at roughly 29.82%.  Currently, when reviewing the estimates of the 2025 season, New Brunswick colonies only made up 9,958 of the 40,300 bee hives used overall.  This is a 24.72% market share. This indicates that New Brunswick beekeepers have lost overall market share and are not matching the trajectory expected to maintain the estimated market share proposed in the pollination strategy.

The circumstances in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island differ somewhat from those discussed above.  The planned increase in blueberry production acreage for NB, with more need for pollination services, is not matched by the other two Maritime provinces.  Nonetheless, there is pressure across the industry for production efficiencies, gained in part, through increased yields for existing acreage.  To achieve this increase in yield, more pollination units will be required.  The resulting increased demand for pollination services in Nova Scotia is evidenced by the importation of 864 colonies into the province in 2025 through the Pollination Pilot Project.  The number of colonies imported into NS is likely to only increase for 2026 and into the future.  Even with NS having record breaking hive numbers in the fall of 2025 (approximately 30,000) the importation will decrease the market share of for the provinces beekeepers by an estimated 5 – 7% for this season compared to prior years.  Prince Edward Island has seen a slight downward trend in the number of hives managed in the province for the past several years.  So, if demand remains constant on the Island, market share for the province’s beekeepers will be lost equivalent to the decrease in provincial hive numbers.  

When discussing the pollination market share, it is important to recognize that non-apis pollinators, such as bumble bees and alfalfa leaf cutter bees, are a growing portion of the market. Each year an increasing number of bumble bee quads are being imported into the Maritime region, and, although the specific number of imported quads is not recorded, it is recognized that bumble bees and other managed non-apis pollinators are gaining market share of the pollination industry.  The strong market share of non-apis pollinators can be seen in New Brunswick with the province projecting that by 2029, bumble bees and alfalfa leaf cutter bees will make up 24% of the total pollination capacity.

Globally, the demand for wild blueberries, and, therefore, pollination services, remains high. More acres going into production and increasing production efficiencies will also push demand for pollination of wild blueberries.  Market share is only one consideration, especially as there is still a strong, growing need for honey bee colonies in the region.  With this, comes opportunities for beekeepers and sector growth.  Loss of market share may be inevitable as, in some areas, factors like forage availability, limit growth capacity of commercial beekeepers.  This will mean that the demand cannot be met from within the Maritime region.  Alternatively, the advantages of market share, such as economy of scale and the associated demonstration of the quality of management, should not be ignored.  The other important aspect of market share is market power.  Currently the strong relationship between the Maritime beekeeping and wild blueberry industries is due to local honey bees being a foundational pollination provider.  As the share of the market alters due to importation of honey bee colonies, and with the expanded use of non-apis pollinators, market power may shift.  It is yet to be seen how the 2026 pollination season will unfold but the hope is that local honey bees will perform, as always, to support a successful wild blueberry production season.

1.  1. New Brunswick Wild Blueberry Pollination Strategy (Executive Summary) (2024) https://www2.gnb.ca/content/dam/gnb/Departments/10/pdf/Agriculture/WildBlueberries-BleuetsSauvages/nb-wild-blueberry-pollination-strategy.pdf

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

It is frequently discussed within the beekeeping industry if wild blueberry pollination has an impact on honey bee health. In a recent blog “Associated Honey Bee Health Risks of Wild Blueberry Pollination and Migratory Beekeeping Practices” (published March 12, 2026) it was explained how migratory beekeeping practices can promote the spread of pests and diseases which directly impacts the health of colonies during and following pollination. However, other than the spread of pests and diseases, there are additional honey bee health risks related to pollination. Both the transportation of colonies and placement of colonies on various agriculture crops, such as wild blueberries, can add stress to honey bee health, which will be explored in this week’s blog.

 

Understanding how Wild Blueberry Pollination can Impact Honey Bee Health

 

Each spring thousands of Maritime colonies travel around the region to pollinate wild blueberries and other agriculture crops. Although pollination is an essential service provided by honey bees it has been questioned by beekeepers and researchers what impacts pollination has on the health of honey bees. To start, it is important that beekeepers understand that the transportation of colonies increases stress on bees. The migratory beekeeping practices discussed in a past blog post (March 12, 2026) have a known impact on the health of honey bees. Transportation can impact bees in a variety of ways such as impacting their ability to thermoregulate the hive, increasing susceptibility to pests and diseases (such as European foulbrood), preventing access to diverse forage sources, and creating physical stress due to the vibrations of transport¹. Transportation practices create a less healthy environment for honey bees, and can weaken colonies prior to pollinating crops or returning to their home apiaries. Therefore, beekeepers must mitigate this stressor by sending strong and healthy colonies to pollination, with adequate food stores. Beekeepers can also make their own management decisions regarding the distance they are willing to transport colonies to support colony health.

 

Once colonies are placed on various agriculture crops there are other health considerations. The availability of nutritional forage while pollinating crops is a key consideration for colonies to remain healthy. In the Maritime region the majority of honey bee colonies are used to pollinate wild blueberries. The ATTTA team investigated the availability of diverse forage by collecting pollen samples from colonies placed on wild blueberry fields over a three-year period. It was found that the diversity and nutritional value of available pollen during wild blueberry pollination is highly dependent on individual field conditions. For example, wild blueberries fields surrounded by a diversity of land use, such as agriculture and residential area, offered a variety of pollen sources to honey bees and greater potential to fulfil their dietary needs, whereas vast blueberry fields surrounded by coniferous forests offered fewer, less varied sources of pollen². Stocking density of colonies during pollination can also impact the availability of forage, and is something worth discussing between the beekeeper and grower.

Honey bee pollinating wild blueberry flower (ATTTA©2016)

 

One other health risk associated with pollination practices is exposure to agrochemicals. If fields are treated with pesticides before or during the pollination period honey bees, among other commercial and native pollinators, are at risk of pesticide exposure and associated impacts. Recent research found that various insecticides, herbicides and fungicides are found on wild blueberry fields in Quebec, however, pesticide concentrations found in bee bread and nectar remained below the LD₅₀ for each active ingredient tested³. To help protect honey bees, and other pollinators, from agrochemicals, there should be clear communication between beekeepers and growers regarding the timing and choice of various pesticide applications. Growers should aim to use products with reduced toxicity to bees, and should not apply any agrochemicals immediately before or during the pollination period.

 

Pollination services are essential to food security, provide needed revenue to beekeepers and provide a service required of wild blueberry production. The use of honey bees for pollination services is vital, however, that does not mean that beekeepers and growers should not recognize and help mitigate the stress pollination can cause for honey bees. It is in the best interest of both the beekeeper and grower to help keep colonies healthy during the pollination period to ensure a sustainable pollination industry year after year.

 

References

1. Melicher, D., Wilson, E.S., Bowsher, J.H., Peterson, S.S., Yocum, G.D. and Rinehart, J.P., 2019. Long-distance transportation causes temperature stress in the honey bee, Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Environmental entomology, 48(3), pp.691-701.
2. Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture. 2023. Best Management Practices Guide For Honey Bee Pollination of Wild Blueberries in Atlantic Canada.
3. Quiroga-Arcila, A.M., McCune, F., Fournier, V. and Giovenazzo, P., 2025. Bee-ing a Pollinator: Constraints, Concerns, and Challenges of Lowbush Blueberry Pollination. International Journal of Fruit Science, 25(1), pp.28-63.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

Each spring thousands of honey bee colonies are moved throughout the Maritime region to pollinate wild blueberry fields. For some beekeeping operations, colonies are moved within a relatively short radius of their home apiary pollinating nearby fields. Other operations may move colonies significant distances with colonies migrating across counties and provinces to pollinate wild blueberries. The migratory beekeeping practices that exist within the Maritime region, across Canada and within North American present significant health risks to honey bee colonies, operations and industries. This week’s blog will discuss associated honey bee health risks of migratory pollination practices both within and outside of the Maritime region.

Associated Honey Bee Health Risks of Wild Blueberry Pollination and Migratory Beekeeping Practices

Each Maritime province has unique pollination practices which present various risks to colony health. Within each Maritime province, colonies are migrated throughout the province to pollinate wild blueberries. Nova Scotia has recently allowed for the importation of a strict number of Canadian honey bee colonies originating outside of the province during the time of wild blueberry pollination. For decades prior to 2025, the province did not grant permission for the importation of honey bee colonies, and only Nova Scotian honey bee colonies pollinated wild blueberries. Both New Brunswick and PEI import thousands of colonies each year from across Canada to meet the pollination demand. In 2024, New Brunswick imported 26,737 honey bee colonies. Last season, PEI imported 3,472 honey bee colonies some of which were from British Columbia and were transported across the country traveling throughout most of the Canadian provinces. In addition to honey bee colonies, managed non-Apis pollinators such as bumble bees and alfalfa leafcutting bees are imported from outside provincial boards, and historically outside Canada, to meet the pollination demand.

Demonstration of hive loading equipment in New Brunswick at a wild blueberry pollination beekeeping operation (ATTTA^© 2025)

Throughout Canada thousands of colonies are moved to and from various provinces to pollinate wild blueberries among other crops such canola, apples, cranberries, and highbush blueberries. The one exception to interprovincial movement of honey bees is Newfoundland and Labrador as the province does not permit the importation of bees to help maintain their exceptionally unique pest and disease profile, which is free of Varroa mites, American foulbrood, European foulbrood, small hive beetle and wax moth.

Outside of Canada migratory beekeeping practices are prevalent and globally the movement of honey bees and the spread of pests and diseases could have an impact on Canada’s industry including the spread of new pests and diseases into Canada and the availability of approved countries for queen importation. Canada imports queens from European counties, Australia, New Zealand, South American countries, with the majority of queens imported from the United States. The United States has significant migratory beekeeping practices where greater than 2 million colonies follow major bloom cycles for pollination and honey production. Their migratory practices start with almond pollination in February with over 60% of US colonies converging in California in February and March (Bond et al. 2021). From California, bees move to pollinate apples and pears in Washington, blueberries in Maine, and cranberries in Wisconsin (Bond et al. 2021). In summer and fall many colonies move to the Northern Plains for clover honey production, and then these hives are transported to southern states such as Texas, Florida and Georgia to overwinter (Bond et al. 2021).

Biosecurity practices, and the associated risks of various pests and diseases, needs to be evaluated at the level of within an apiary, operation, province, region, country and internationally. As the geographical range expands so does the likelihood of different honey bee pest and disease profiles. Therefore, as the migration distance for pollination increases, so does the risk of transmitting various pests and diseases to other colonies, apiaries, operations, provinces and countries.

When colonies converge in wild blueberry fields, and other pollinated crops, various pests and diseases can spread between colonies of different origin and pests and diseases can be spread to local colonies in the surrounding area. Some of the pests and diseases of concern within the Maritime region include American foulbrood, small hive beetle, high levels of Varroa mites and amitraz-resistant Varroa mites. Additionally, both the Canadian and North American beekeeping industry are remaining vigilant against the introduction of new pests and diseases such as the Tropilaelaps mite which is prevalent in countries in Asia.

Across North America the pollination demand is high and often pollination requirements cannot be met with only local hives. Therefore, there is a continued need to import hives into various regions. Many regions, including the Maritimes, are working towards growing their beekeeping industry to better support pollination demands and reducing reliance on imported hives. In addition to increasing the number of commercial beekeepers and colonies going to pollination it is equally as important that hives are managed to be strong and healthy which will contribute to low winter loss each year. Within Canada each provincial apiculturist helps minimize the risk of spreading pests and diseases by conducting inspections before/after colonies leave/enter the province, and each province also has inspection programs and regulations within province to help minimize the spread of pests and diseases.

Other than the spread of pests and diseases, there are additional honey bee health risks related to pollination. Both the transportation of colonies and placement of colonies on various agriculture crops adds stress to honey bee health. Different crops provide different nutritional value to honey bees and pollination can be linked to reduced nutrients and forage availability for honey bees. Additionally, there may be increased agrochemical exposure while honey bees are placed on pollination crops, which further contributes to poor health. A future blog will further discuss how wild blueberry pollination can have an impact on honey bee health.

References

Bond, J.K., Hitaj, C., Smith, D., Hunt, K., Perez, A. and Ferreira, G., 2021. Honey bees on the move: From pollination to honey production and back.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

Last week the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture had a series of meetings with beekeepers and wild blueberry growers in Charlottetown, PE and the surrounding area. These meetings provided a great opportunity to recap the 2025 beekeeping and pollination season, and to discuss future research plans and priorities of the ATTTA team. Read this week’s blog for an overview of the various meetings.

Review of Prince Edward Island Beekeeper and Wild Blueberry Meetings

Last week the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture had several meetings with various stakeholders of the PEI beekeeping and wild blueberry industries. ATTTA met with the PEI department of agriculture, the PEI Wild Blueberry Growers’ Association and the PEI Beekeepers’ Association to discuss research plans and priorities of ATTTA’s, and to learn more about PEI’s beekeeping and wild blueberry pollination season. In addition to meeting with industry representatives, ATTTA also met with any individual PEI beekeeper who expressed interest in sitting down with ATTTA one-on-one to discuss their own beekeeping interests, concerns and goals.

When discussing ATTTA’s research, one of the main projects of interest to all Maritime beekeepers, PEI included, is ATTTA’s Varroa mite work. ATTTA has one more season left of their regional Varroa mite survey and amitraz efficacy study, but the team is already discussing future honey bee health research, and, given the impact this pest has on the industry, research will continue to prioritize Varroa mite management.

ATTTA also discussed with industry past wild blueberry pollination work and the various research interests of island growers, such as the use of non-apis pollinators, importance and abundance of native pollinators on the island, and the use of weather stations and growing degree day models to improve pollination efficiency. ATTTA will continue to consult with all Maritime wild blueberry associations and government representatives when designing future pollination research projects.

Some of the topics discussed with individual beekeepers included wax moth management, overwintering preparation, splitting colonies, queen availability and queen production. Wax moth continues to be a concern for many island beekeepers. To help provide information on wax moth biology, prevention, and management of infestations, ATTTA published a fact sheet which can be found on the ATTta website: https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/. The ATTTA team will also be presenting some information on wax moth management at upcoming PEI beekeeping events.

Overall, island beekeepers indicate having a good 2025 beekeeping season. Last winter, the province experienced a winter loss of 22.9% which is below their provincial average and a significant improvement from the previous winter (2023-2024) at 61.3%. An estimated 4,675 hives, supplied by approximately 25 to 30 beekeepers, went to pollinate wild blueberries, and an additional 3,472 hives were imported into the province during the pollination period. A full report regarding the 2025 beekeeping season, including estimated honey production for the province, will be provided by the provincial apiculturist at the upcoming annual general meeting for the PEI Beekeepers’ Association.

The PEI Beekeepers’ Association annual general meeting will be held on February 28^th at the Charlottetown Library Learning Centre (97 Queen St Dominion Building), and all island beekeepers are encouraged to attend to learn about industry happenings and gain insight to new research happening within the beekeeping industry. Another event of interest to PEI beekeepers is an upcoming workshop organized by the PEI Beekeepers’ Association and ATTTA, which will be taking place on April 24^th and 25^th at the Farm Centre (420 University Ave, Charlottetown).

PEI Spring Workshop occurring on April 24^th and 25^th in Charlottetown, PE.

Thank you to all beekeepers, wild blueberry growers and industry representatives who took the time to met with our team last week. ATTTA is looking forward to the mentioned upcoming events, and for another great beekeeping season collaborating with island beekeepers and growers.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

As we start a new year, the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture would like to highlight the many upcoming opportunities to engage with the Maritime beekeeping and wild blueberry industries. Attending various industry events is a great way to meet other beekeepers and wild blueberry growers, and to learn about what is happening in the industry. Read this week’s blog for a summary of upcoming events in 2026.

Upcoming Maritime Beekeeping and Wild Blueberry Industry Events

Industry involvement is an important component to committing to beekeeper education and training. Joining the provincial beekeeping association, and attending annual general meetings, is a great opportunity to learn about the industry, including new practices and research. Each of the three Maritime provinces have a scheduled annual general meeting for 2026:

Nova Scotia Beekeepers’ Association – January 23^rd and 24^th

Prince Edward Island Beekeepers’ Association – February 28^th

New Brunswick Beekeepers’ Association – March 13^th and 14^th

Visit the various provincial beekeeping associations websites to learn more about these upcoming events.

Nova Scotia Beekeepers’ Association annual general meeting 2026.

Both beekeepers and wild blueberry growers would also benefit from attending the Maritime wild blueberry growers’ spring meeting on April 10^th and 11^th (details to be provided at a later date).

To engage with the beekeeping industry at a national level, Maritime beekeepers should consider attending the Canadian National Beekeeping Convention and Tradeshow which will be taking place in Calgary on February 12^th –  14^th (https://honeycouncil.ca/beetech2026/).

The Canadian National Beekeeping Convention 2026.

To engage with agriculture more broadly, the Scotia Horticulture Congress 2026 will be held in Greenwich, NS on January 26^th and 27^th (https://horticulturens.ca/scotia-horticultural-congress-2021/).

Scotia Horticulture Congress 2026.

Another upcoming event is a 2026 Getting into the Weeds webinar series hosted by Perennia Food and Agriculture Corporation. This webinar is targeted towards horticulture producers, but is focused on cost of production and can benefit a variety of agriculture commodities. It will take place on January 12th and 20th.

2026 Getting into the Weeds Webinar.

The ATTTA team continues to offer various training opportunities throughout the calendar year. There will be two more winter workshops offered virtually to members of the Atlantic beekeeping and wild blueberry industries on January 27^th and February 24^th. Details of these workshop will be communicated through your respective associations. 

The Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture winter workshop series 2026.

The ATTTA team will have various training opportunities throughout the beekeeping season. Starting on March 16^th ATTTA’s main training program “The Fundamentals of Beekeeping” will be offered for its sixth year. The program is offered in partnership with Dalhousie Extended Learning and provides production skills and beekeeping knowledge timed specifically to the annual beekeeping cycle for both new and experienced beekeepers. The program is offered virtually, with 4 in-person training sessions that occur across the Maritimes.

https://registeratcontinuingeducation.dal.ca/public/category/courseCategoryCertificateProfile.do?method=load&certificateId=2329209

This spring ATTTA is hosting a workshop in partnership with the PEI beekeepers’ association covering a range of beekeeping topics. The workshop will take place on April 24^th and 25^th in Charlottetown.

The ATTTA team is also offering two “New to Beekeeping” sessions (expected to occur in early April) for both the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick beekeeping industries. These introductory sessions will cover the very basics of what new beekeepers should know (industry overview, rules and regulations, required training and next steps). Those who register as a new beekeeper in 2025/2026 (Nova Scotia and New Brunswick) will receive details of these sessions.

ATTTA is currently planning for additional workshops and training opportunities occurring in 2026 and will continue to provide more details as they become available. Our team will offer partnered workshops with various provincial, national and international groups. Additionally members of the ATTTA team are already planning a 1-day queen production workshop happening this summer.

Please reach out to the ATTTA team with any questions regarding upcoming education and training events. Additionally, continue to read ATTTA’s blog and buzz update as we will communicate reminders and details of upcoming events each week. 

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

Review of the Wild Blueberry Producers’ Association of Nova Scotia Annual General Meeting

Last week the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture had the pleasure of attending and presenting at the Wild Blueberry Producers’ Association of Nova Scotia annual general meeting for 2025 in Truro, NS. Read this week’s blog for a summary of the event, and to learn more about the 2025 wild blueberry season in Nova Scotia.

Review of the Wild Blueberry Producers’ Association of Nova Scotia Annual General Meeting

The Wild Blueberry Producers’ Association of Nova Scotia (WBPANS) held their annual general meeting last week on November 20^th and 21^st. To start the event, Andrew Dobson (WBPANS president) and Janette McDonald (WBPANS executive director) welcomed everyone to the conference and gave an overview of the two-day agenda.

Executive director of the Wild Blueberry Producers’ Association, Janette McDonald, at the 2025 WBPANS AGM in Truro, NS (2025).

The first presenter of the conference was Gilbert Lavoie (Forest Lavoie Conseil) who provided a wild blueberry market update. Wild blueberry production was down across the Maritime region with New Brunswick producing 25 million lbs., Nova Scotia producing 20 million lbs., and Prince Edward Island producing 21 million lbs. (Maritimes = 66 million lbs., and North America = 213 million lbs.). This past year was the lowest production of wild blueberries seen in North America within 25 years. Low production can be attributed to drought conditions persisting throughout the growing season, which were extreme within the Maritime region. The market price of wild blueberries continues to increase due to low inventories and production this past season. The demand for wild blueberries remains high. Despite high market price and good demand, revenue will be a continued challenge in the Maritime region due to exceptionally low production and high input costs.

Next, the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture provided a research update. To learn about ATTTA’s 2025 research projects read the past blog post “Summary of ATTTA Summer Field Work 2025” published on September 18^th. Our team will also continue to provide research updates through reports and throughout the 2025 meeting season.

Members of the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture discussed various business risk management programs offered by the federal and provincial governments. These programs consist of Agri Invest, Agri Insurance, Agri Stability and Agri Recovery. These programs can help growers protect their livelihood during a poor growing season as observed this past summer. To learn more about each program visit https://agriculture.canada.ca/en/programs.

To start the afternoon session, Hugh Lyu (Perennia) provided a wild blueberry extension report. Hugh highlighted the severity of this past season’s drought conditions which, depending on the region of Nova Scotia, caused high yield reduction (various regions reporting between 55 to 100% reduction). Hugh also discussed how drought impacts the wild blueberry plant, where primary indicators of plant stress include a reduced number of berries and buds, and changes in leaf colour. It is still unknown how this past season’s drought will impact next year’s crop fields.

The Minister of Agriculture, Honorable Greg Morrow, addressed members of Nova Scotia’s wild blueberry industry, and demonstrated that the department of agriculture recognizes the extreme impact the 2025 drought has had on growers, and that the department is working to support growers however they can.

To conclude day one of the event, WBPANS held their annual business meeting. The business meeting included a president’s report (Andrew Dobson) and executive director’s report (Janette McDonald). The executive director of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture (Carolyn Van Den Heuvel) gave an update on the various activities of the NSFA and the agriculture programs that NSFA supports. The business meeting also consisted of a promotion committee report (Sam Haley) and research committee report (James Fullerton).

Day two of the event started with a presentation from Patrick O’Neil (Wild Blueberry Association of North America – WBANA). Patrick discussed the structure of WBANA, and the various partners of the association. Patrick highlighted the marketing priorities of WBANA, and discussed various promotional activities and events that have recently occurred to promote the wild blueberry industry.

Dr. Collen Craig (Chair of the WBANA Health Research Committee) gave a health research update highlighting current and upcoming projects being funded and/or supported by WBANA. Some of the areas of wild blueberry health research currently in works include the benefits of wild blueberries for protection against ultraviolet rays, prevention of inflammation in the body, stress management and improved brain function.

Next, Dr. Scott White (Dalhousie University) provided a weed management update discussing the efficacy of various herbicides to manage hair fescue and sheep sorrel. Dr. White discussed which products are best to be applied in sprout versus crop year fields, and the optimal timing of application within the season.

Members of Dr. Chris Cutler’s lab (Dalhousie University) provided research updates on the biology and management of two insect pests of wild blueberries – spotted winged drosophila (SWD) and blueberry maggot. Samantha Van Wart discussed monitoring techniques for SWD including lures and traps highlighting crucial times for growers to be monitoring. Janelle MacKeil provided a research update on blueberry maggot which provided insight to the biology of the pest, when growers should be monitoring in their fields and what treatments are currently available and effective to manage blueberry maggot.

Patrick Hennessy (Dalhousie University) gave an update on his research regarding new technology in pesticide applications. Patrick discussed the results of field trials for using smart sprayers and machine vision technology to treat various weeds, and to detect and treat various wild blueberry diseases.

Dr. David Percival (Dalhousie University) presented on the impacts drought stress has on the physiology of the wild blueberry plant. Overall, the wild blueberry plant is resilient to both water and heat related stress, but prolonged stress impacts the plant’s ability to photosynthesize and in turn produce fruit. Additionally, environmental stress creates competition for resources between the wild blueberry plant and various weeds (ex. hair fescue), further impacting the health of the plant.

To conclude the meeting, Dr. Harrison Wright (Agriculture and Agrifood Canada) gave a research update on wild blueberry hardiness. Dr. Wright explained three techniques that can be used to assess plant hardiness and provided preliminary results comparing the hardiness of wild lowbush blueberries to cultivated highbush blueberries. Dr. Wright also explained some of the impacts dramatic winter temperature fluctuations can have on plant hardiness as observed during the winter of 2023.

This past year the wild blueberry industry experienced one of their most challenging growing seasons as their industry was significantly impacted by drought conditions, and it remains a challenge for the industry to generate sufficient revenue with high production costs and low yield once again. Despite the many challenges the industry has, the wild blueberry industry is resilient, and it works to produce a quality product for which there is high demand. Thank you to all members of WBPANS who helped organize this great event, which provided an opportunity for growers to recap the 2025 season and to learn from ongoing research.

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca